Coping



C. H. MILLER ETAL COPING Filed Feb. 25, 1941 Aug. 4, 1942.

Q/VI FJK/K M ATTORNEYS.

Patented Aug. 4, 1942 UNITED STATES PAT ENT OFFICE COPING Charles, H. Miller and Samuel. 0. McFall, Shaker Heights, Ohio This invention relates to. coping or a. like finishing element.

An object of the invention is to provide an improved coping or like element which may be secured firmly to. the top. of a wall. or similar structure.

Another object is to provide an improved coping which will present a neat and smooth finished appearance.

Another object is to provide an improved coping which will effectively protect the wall or structure to which it is applied from moisture and the like.

Another object of the invention is to. provide an improved coping which will present an attractive appearance from the various directions from which it may be viewed.

Another object is to provide an improved coping which will, after being installed, exposeonly finished surfaces.

Another object is to provide an improved coping which will shed water at places remote from the sides of the wall or structure to which it has been applied.

Another object is to provide an improved coping having all surfaces which are to be exposed after installation capable of being glazed.

Another object isto provide an improved coping which may be easily andeconomically manufactured and installed.

Other objects. will hereinafter appear.

The invention will be better understood from the description of one practical embodiment thereof, illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which:

Figure 1, is a fragmentary perspective view of the top of a brick wall to which coping embodying the present invention has been. applied;

Figure 2 is a transverse section of the wall of Figure 1 to a slightly enlarged scale; and

Figure 3 is. a transverse sectional view of two sections. of coping showing the manner in which these sections are made.

This invention constitutes an improvement upon and a carrying forward of the invention of the prior patent to one of the applicants herein, Charles H. Miller, the patent being numbered 2,153,308 and issued on April 4, 1939.

As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the coping may be applied to the top of a wall or other building element such as a building parapet, and, in the drawing, this is illustrated as a plurality of courses of bricks I secured together by mortar 2.

The coping itself consists of a series of sections laid in end-to-end relation above the uppermost course of' brick of the Wall, and secured to the wall by an intermediate layer of mortar, cement or the like, indicated generally at 3.

Each of the coping sections consists of an integral piece of material such, for instance, as baked; ceramic tile, andhas a lower web 4 and upper web 5, these being held in spaced relation by a central web 6 and by side flanges or webs l.

The upper webiis-convexly arched or crowned, being shown as a generally cylindrical contour to permit rain or other moisture to flow readily to and over its side edges. The lower webis likewise shown as slightly arched in the same direction, so that it presents its concave surface toward the wall. The curvature of the lower web, however, in general practice, being very slight and substantially less than the curvature of the upper web.

The sides 1 are extended beyond the lower web to depend as indicated at 8' so that they are in horizontal alignment with the sides of the upper course ofbricks I and constitute the ribs or flanges of a channel-shaped portion of the tile embracing the top of the wall.

The inner surfaces of these flanges: are shown as converging toward each other in a downward direction, or in a direction away from the upper and lower webs 4 and 5, and thus providing space between flanges having a greater width more nearly to the web 4- than at a further distance from this web;

The lower surface of the depending flanges 8 are inclined to the horizontal, diverging in a downwardly direction, so that the lowermost edge of the coping is spaced substantially outwardly from the sides of the wall and at substantially the extreme outer edge ofthe coping.

Upon installation, a layer of cement, mortar, or the like 3 is spreadv upon the top of the upper course of bricks I. and, the coping section is laid upon this layer. and pressed down, thus extruding some of the cement into the space defined by surfaces 9 of flanges 8, filling first the widest part of this space and forming, in eilect, keys between this wider part of the space and the sides of the wall, which, upon hardening, will firmly lock the coping and upper course of brick together.

Any moisture running down the upper surface of the coping thereafter passes over its sides and drips off at the lowermost edges I0, having no tendency to run along the bottom surface of flange 8. Similarly, any moisture which may reach the inner surface 9 of the flange 8 runs down this surface to the outer edge l0, where it drips off the coping.

Thus, any moisture falling on the top of the wall does not run down the sides of the coping, then inwardly, and then down the sides of the brick wall, but on the contrary, all moisture which runs down the leeward side of the coping falls clear of the leeward side of the wall, while the moisture running down the windward side of the coping may clear the sides of the bricks, but :in no event will impinge upon them until some distance beneath the coping. Y This prevents the discoloration of the sides of the masonry wall, which has been so marked with some prior types of coping. These have often concentrated streams of water and caused it to run down in localized quantities streaking the sides of buildings.

The coping sections may be made as illustrated in Figure 3, by extruding clay or the like through a die, thus forming two sections at a time, there being arranged with their lowermost webs 4 toward each other.

The webs 4 as they are extruded are connected by intermediate temporary webs H, which are notched or scored as indicated at l2 closely adjacent the webs 4.

After the coping sections have been extruded, the ends are cut, as most clearly illustrated in Figure 1, into a stepped formation so that the end [3 of the lower web 4 projects beyond the end M of the upper web 5 at one end of the coping section, while at the other end of the section, the end l5 of the lower web recedes by substantially the same distance beneath the end It of the upper web, thus providing for a ship-lap type of joint between the ends of successive coping sections.

After the ends of the coping sections have been cut, as above indicated,.these sections are dried, baked, or fired, as is customary in the production of ceramic articles generally. The sections may be glazed, and it will be evident the glaze may extend not only over the top and outer sides of the sections, but also along the bottom edges of flanges 8 and if desired, up their inner sides 9.

Thus, when a wall has applied to it coping made in this manner, even the lower edges of flanges 8 present a glazed surface, precluding the entrance of moisture, and adding materially to the appearance of the coping when viewed from below. Its appearance is much more attractive than former types, in which the edges of the flanges presented a rough, broken appearance.

After the two sections, made as above described and as shown in Figure 3, have been completely baked, the webs II are broken away to separate the sections, this breaking causing these webs to separate from webs 4 at the points where the scoring [2 had been provided; and leaving on theunder surface of web 4,'small, rough surfaced ribs l1. These ribs, of course, are completely concealed and embedded in the cement 3 on installation, and in no manner detract from the appearance of the finished coping. Moreover, the roughness of their embedded surfaces provide an effective bond with the cement, adding to the other features of the coping in assisting in holding the same firmly in place upon the wall.

While we have described the illustrated embodiment of our invention in some particularity, obviously many modifications and variations will readily occur to those skilled in the art to which it appertains, and we do not, therefore, limit ourselves to the precise details shown and described, but claim as our invention all embodiments, modifications, and variations coming within the scope of the appended claims.

We claim:

1. A unitary coping section having a portion of generally channel shape adapted to embrace the edge of a wall, the edges of the flanges of the channel diverging in a direction away from the web thereof.

2. A unitary coping section having a portion of generally channel shape adapted to embrace the edge of a wall, the edges of the flanges of the channel being longest at points remote from the inner side of said flanges.

3. A unitary coping section having a portion of generally channel shape adapted to embrace the edge of a wall, the edges of the flanges of the channel being longest adjacent the outer sides of said flanges.

4. A unitary coping section having a portion of generally channel shape adapted to embrace the edge of a wall, the edges of the flanges of the channel being longest at points remote from the inner side of said flanges and the inner sides of said flanges being spaced at varying distances, the maximum distance between said sides being closer to the web of the channel than the'minimum distance.

5. A unitary coping section having a portion of generally channel shape adapted to embrace the edge of a wall, the edges of the flanges of the channel being longest at points remote from the inner side of said flanges and the inner sides of said flanges being spaced at varying distances, the maximum distance between said sides being closer to the web of the channel than the minimum distance and ribs on the inner side of the Web of said channel spaced inwardly from said flanges.

6. A unitary coping section having a portion of generally channel shape adapted to embrace the edge of a wall, the edges of the flanges of the channel diverging in a direction away from the web thereof, the exterior of said channel shaped member being glazed and the glaze extending along the outer sides and edges of the flanges.

S. O. MCFALL. C. H. MILLER. 

